The 22nd MNRA Plenary Assembly was held in Tirana, Albania, on September 28 and 29, 2023, at the invitation of the Audiovisual Media Authority (AMA).

Twenty member authorities from eighteen countries and territories around the Mediterranean sea were present: AMA from Albania, CTR from Armenia, CRTA from Cyprus, AEM from Croatia, Arcom from France, GRA from Gibraltar, NCRTV from Greece, AGCOM from Italy, IMC from Kosovo, BA from Malta, HACA from Morocco, CA of Moldova, AEM of Montenegro, ERC of Portugal, AVMU of the Republic of Northern Macedonia, REM of Serbia, CAA of Andalusia, CAC of Catalonia, CNMC of Spain, RTUK of Turkey. Representatives from UNESCO, TikTok and Meta also took part in the discussions.

The work of the plenary assembly was structured around three current themes in media regulation: video-sharing platforms, the European Freedom Act, in particular its provisions concerning quality journalism and fact-checkers, and the “guidelines for regulating digital platforms” proposed by UNESCO as a follow-up to the global conference “Internet for trust” held at the institution’s headquarters in Paris on February 21-23, 2023. The three sessions gave rise to rich and sustained exchanges and debates between the participants.

The study carried out by the Gender and Media working group in 2022 on the representation of women in news magazines and audiovisual sports programs in the Mediterranean area was presented by the CAC of Catalonia. Future work will focus on the presence and representation of women in daily news programs. The Media Education working group proposed to continue its work by organizing regular online meetings, as well as one face-to-face meeting during the year to encourage exchanges between members.

Mrs Armela Krasniqi, Chairwoman of the AMA

During the plenary assembly, the Albanian AMA took over the presidency of the network for one year, and the Armenian CTR was elected vice-president. The next RIRM plenary meeting will be held in Armenia in autumn 2024.

Mr Tigran Hakobyan, Chairman of the CTR